Today, I sat in on a nuclear drill at the Emergency Management building. Federal law requires that every nuclear power plant goes through a nuclear emergency drill once every other year. Today was the Catawba plant’s drill. The Catawba plant is operated by Duke Energy and is located in South Carolina under Charlotte. Although the plant itself is out of state, several North Carolina counties lie within the “danger zone”, meaning that they are close enough to the plant that they would be affected by radiation if the plant were to experience any issues.
During the drill, each individual has a certain list of things they must accomplish and demonstrate that they can do successfully. For example, some are tasked with drafting press releases, setting up shelters, decontamination, or monitoring a hotline for rumor control. It was very interesting to see how many different people with different roles all come together to ensure public safety during events like this. There was also a line set up on the conference phone that the departments in South Carolina and North Carolina tuned in to in order to make sure that everyone was on the same page. This communication is critical to public safety and everything running smoothly because it guarantees that both states are releasing the same information, thus preventing public panic or confusion.
As the level of emergency classification intensified, so did the importance of maintaining this communication. Today’s drill reiterated the significance of effective communication, which is a lesson that has been very prominent the last six days and one which I’m certain will stick with me long after the commencement of my work experience program.
